Governor Ayodele Fayose yesterday said aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirants in Ekiti State were free to leave the party and join the ‘camp of the enemy’ if they were not pleased with the choice of his deputy, Prof. Kolapo Olusola, as the preferred candidate.

The aggrieved aspirants include Senator Biodun Olujimi, who represents Ekiti South in the Senate; former Minister for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye; Ambassador Dare Bejide; and former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Owoseeni Ajayi.“It doesn’t matter how many people are barking. If a dog barks, what can it do with the owner? If they want to join our enemies let them do so. This (Olusola) is the next governor of Ekiti State,” Fayose said.

The governor spoke at Ojumose in Ado-Ekiti during a rally organized by the Osokomole Mass Movement (OMM), a grassroots organisation mobilising support for him. “The Bible says in God we see hope of glory, Kolapo Olusola-Eleka will be governor of Ekiti,” Fayose insisted.He dismissed claim by former governor and Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, that his administration borrowed N50 billion.

“I was reading the former governor’s interview that Ekiti borrowed N50 billion. I have not borrowed a penny to run this government since I came. I challenge him to name the bank, to publish the papers.“They were given an opportunity to govern this state, they failed. We have come to stay and stay for good. We want to stay with good work. Good performance, evidence of service, leadership quality. Governor that is accessible.

“We have taken a position. We have no apology for that position. And that position is Olusola Eleka for governor.“When the government is failing, it is the leaders and the leadership that have failed. When there is Boko Haram, when there are herdsmen and when the economy is down, the government has failed. They have promised all and did nothing,” Fayose said.

The governor listed some of his achievements: “This is a government that started with nothing, and has delivered on so many fronts. Today, the infrastructural development of our state is visible. I stand to be corrected that this government build this flyover, the government is going to deliver to the people the new Oja Oba market. This government will commission the governor’s office by April and will hand over the court complex in March.”

In his reaction, Adeyeye said: “Using executive powers to coerce, force and threaten the civil servants, students, councilors and political appointees to attend a political rally of a stooge aspirant is despicable. It violates the fundamental rights of freedom of association of these people.

“We sympathise with Ekiti people because we have never had it so bad, not even during the despotic military rule. “You can force delegates to attend rallies but you can’t force them to vote in a secret ballot electoral system. In this rally, you will see traumatized and deprived faces of people yearning for freedom from the hands of the modern days emperor of Ekiti.” Adeyeye urged Ekiti people to use their votes to stop what he described as continuity of imposition, impunity and financial recklessness.